Gov. Bev Perdue has vetoed HB 854, the “Woman’s Right to Know Act”. The legislation would require women to listen to a standard set of information regarding abortion and abortion alternatives, view an ultrasound of the unborn child, and then wait 24 hours before going through with an abortion. In her veto message, Perdue called the legislation “a dangerous intrusion into the confidential relationship that exists between women and their doctors.”
Republicans in the General Assembly are widely expected to attempt an override of the Governor’s veto during the July legislative session. However, the legislation will have to gain one vote in the House and two in the Senate in order to defeat the governor’s objection. Republicans have a veto-proof margin in the Senate, but one Republican, Sen. Stan Bingham (R-Davidson) voted against the legislation, and another, Sen. Richard Stevens (R-Wake) did not cast a vote on the bill. The legislation would also need to attract one more Democrat in the House to reach the three-fifths threshold necessary to override the veto. Three House Democrats previously voted for the legislation.
Perdue also vetoed HB 482 “Water Supply Lines/Water Violation Wavers,” which would have allowed some poorer NC counties to use fines from water violations to fix their problems locally. Perdue said this violated provisions in the North Carolina Constitution.
With yesterday’s vetoes, Perdue has now vetoed more legislation in 2011 than every previous governor in every previous session combined (NC Governors did not gain veto power until the 1997-1998 session). What will she veto next?
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